tonight on "nightline," real life glee. she turned her students including jessica simpson into stars. and when it came time for the production of a lifetime they didn't forget. we've got a front row seat for a truly inspiring performance. perfect harmony. this teacher uses popular music to bring hope to his fifth graders, and millions more. the inspirational story of a school choir with soul. we've got the songs that will leave you speechless. and, yuletide pleasures to keep you warm when it's cold. the british queen of the kitchen, nigella lawson, shares

her specialless peels in a hold dale edition of the "nightline" plate list. >> announcer: from the global resources of abc news with cynthia mcfadden and bill weir in new york city and terry moran in washington, this is "nightline," december 24th, 2010. >> good evening, on this christmas eve, i'm terry moran. we're going to begin with the musical. it's back on the national stage. just look at the smashing success of "glee." but in high school theater departments across the country, the musical never went anywhere and in one particular high school in texas, they've been doing it bigger and better for years, thanks to one remarkable woman. but when she set out on her most elaborate production she had no idea a real life drama was about to unfold. earlier this year, john donvan reported this heartwarming story, and we wanted to bring it again to you tonight. ♪ guess this means you're

sorry ♪ >> reporter: no doubt, you have heard of "glee." the award winner this year for best tv comedy. it follows a high school teacher who tries to turn a talented group of misfits into stars. well, this is a story about a real life "glee." but with a twist. ♪ happy happy happy people ♪ >> we are the opposite world of "glee." we're the kids that are student council president, captains of the football team. ♪ once you drive up a mountain ♪ >> reporter: the beauty queen, the prom queen. and they're all in theater. >> reporter: heather biddle was one of those kids. class of '95. in 1997 it was jessica simpson's turn starring as cassie in "a chorus line."

>> five, six, seven, eight! >> reporter: so, why are all these performers back on the stage that made them high school stars? >> up, five six, seven and eight. >> reporter: to join in a celebration, 25 years in the making. for a teacher who changed their lives. >> she made me want to come back and live high school again. >> you may think you're an eight but i'm thinking you're a ten. >> reporter: lynn zednick shaw created one of the most successful theater programs in the country -- >> have fun with these guys wrap your leg around them. >> reporter: right here at j.j. pierce high school in richardson, texas. when shaw put on a show she set the bar high. and nobody wanted to be the one to tell her "no." >> i have to stay here work you and finish the backdrop. ♪ i'm flying ♪ >> reporter: peter pan needed to fly, and so he did.

jell us needed to rise from the dead in "jesus christ superstar." and when she directed "miss saigon," she needed a showstopper. so, they built a helicopter and flew it in sideways. and just like in the hit show "glee," she also found kids who needed a place to shine. ♪ don't bring around a cloud to rain on my parade ♪ >> reporter: lauren woods today is nothing like the shy new girl who transferred to pierce high school back in 2001. ♪ who told you you're allowed to rain on my parade ♪ >> reporter: and when she recruited the cool kids. ♪ i can see that we will share ♪ >> reporter: shaw found will hughes on the baseball field. elizabeth judd was a sophomore on the cheerleading squad.

♪ you can choose whatever ♪ >> reporter: and her leading man, john redlinger, who was a track star scooped up by shaw after he blew his knee out. ♪ i reach for you ♪ >> reporter: and so when word went out that shaw wanted to mount the show of her life more than 80 of her former students said they were in. one by one alumni put their lives on hold and came from new york to california to take that stage and to be 15 years old once again. ♪ this and that ♪ >> reporter: one of the first to show up was ann stone. she's now a stay at home mom with two kids. she was ready to reprize her role in "a chorus line," but on one condition. >> my first question is, do i have to wear a leotard. when she said no i said i'll do it. >> reporter: but as you will

see, this reunion took a very different turn. a final farewell that no one expected. ♪ and none of it seems to matter ♪ >> reporter: last summer lynn shaw got devastating news. she had beaten breast cancer nine years before but now it was back. in no time word spread that she had only days to live. former students like john redlinger went to say good-bye. >> she smiled and she said okay babies, which is what she always said at the end of every rehearsal, she would say, okay babies, time to go home. and then she cried. and we all sat there and held her hand and it was -- it was a heartwrenching but truly moving moment and i will -- i will never forget that. >> reporter: with lynn shaw gone, what would happen to the show she had dreams of directing? the answer was obvious. the show would go on.

♪ on the day of the show a final dress rehearsal. ♪ >> just so honored we could come back, be on her stage. this is her stage. >> her theater. >> reporter: >> and be able to know that she's watching down and say thank you. >> reporter: there is a full house. and one very empty seat. it's curtain time. ♪ like a stream ♪ >> reporter: if a song can sum up a life well lived, a life that changed the lives of two generations of kids, then this song from the broadway musical "bike ed" "wicked" says it all.

♪ because i knew you ♪ ♪ because i knew you ♪ ♪ i have been changed ♪ ♪ for good ♪ >> reporter: i'm john donvan for "nightline." >> a beautiful legacy for a great teacher. thanks to john donvan for that. when we come back we've got another uplifting story. a teacher, another teacher, his fifth grade students who discovered hope in song. (announcer) no matter what life throws at you you can take the heat. 'til it turns into heartburn you've got what it takes: zantac. it's strong, fast lasting relief. so

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for new york city schoolteacher you're about to meet, and his fifth grade students, that soundtrack has hit a remarkable high note. they perform with a simple nenls that has med them an internet sensation. and just last week the actress anne hathaway invited them to perform at the academy awards. here's sharyn alfonsi with our report. >> reporter: watching greg ryan berg effortlessly settle down 60 fifth graders is enough to leave you in awe.

♪ will you choose love ♪ >> reporter: but when he cues his class to open their mouths again, you can't help but be left speechless. ♪ what does it feel like ♪ >> reporter: meet the choir of ps-22 from staten island, new york. who knew fifth graders had so much soul? >> oh, you know what thankfully i knew fifth graders had that much soul. ♪ you and me ♪ ♪ we're living for a purpose ♪ >> reporter: mr. b is the first to admit he's not your typical chorus teacher. at times, he acts more like an overgrown fifth grader than a 35-year-old. >> yeah, baby. that's my chorus. >> reporter: he coaxes staff at the school.

>> come on come on. ♪ going to the chapel ♪ ♪ and we're gonna get married ♪ >> reporter: but mostly he tries to get students to forget the sheet music and just sing. ♪ i used to roll the dice ♪ ♪ feel the fear in my enemies eyes ♪ >> reporter: yes that's coldplay's "viva la vida." ♪ my head on a silver plait ♪ >> it gives us so far emotionally beyond stuff like that. and it needs to be engaged. they need an outlet. these kids, you know they come from tough places some of them and they've been through a lot. >> reporter: about three-quarters of the students at ps-22 are eligible for free lunches. he says some are struggling at home, others are in special ed or learning english as a second language.

♪ he hopes music givens them a chance to escape. ♪ singing with all the love we got ♪ >> reporter: you seem to be lost in that song a little bit. you close your eyes. this isn't a choreographed performance, this just seems to be coming -- >> from me yeah because first, when i was little i was scared about what the people would say and now you just feel it. >> a lot of the kids may be struggling academically and they may feel like they're not really succeeding in other areas, and then they go to this place where they can totally be themselves and feel comfortable being themselves. ♪ what does it feel like ♪ >> reporter: that's what happened to 10-year-old jared. he dreaded speaking in class, much less singing. >> i was shy. i didn't know -- i didn't think i was going to do a good job, just, like sitting there in front of people. i thought i was going to be forced to do a solo so that's

why i was like -- no. >> reporter: which is what makes jared's story all the more amazing. after singing with the choir for a few months he did something completely out of character. >> came to me with a song "eye of the tiger." >> reporter: he brought the song to you? >> he did. while we were working it out, i asked him to sing the parts to me, i was like how does that go? ♪ eye of the tiger ♪ ♪ is the thrill of the fight ♪ >> reporter: the performance was so stirring mr. b posted it on youtube, and today, about half a million people have watched it. ♪ and he's watching us all with the eye ♪ ♪ of the tiger ♪ >> my friend from chicago e-mailed me, saying you have to see what these kids in some elementary school is doing. this is why schools need music programs. and she sends me the link and it was my son singing "eye of the tiger." ♪ with the skill to survive ♪

>> reporter: jared's mother had no idea her once painfully shy son was an internet sensation. jared found his voice. and now that you've been in this chorus and you had so much attention, do you still think you're shy? >> i don't know why, because i can do this but i can't talk to a girl. >> reporter: and it's exactly that innocence, that ability to overcome obstacles, that's drawn more than 4 million people to the ps-22 videos. ♪ and i saw my reflection ♪ ♪ in the snow-covered hills ♪ ♪ the landslide brought me down ♪ >> reporter: a children's choir taking on songs like fleetwood mac's "landslide." as much as they have been inspired, now we hear the artists are inspired by them. >> oh yeah. >> reporter: stevie nicks said

their rendition of "landslide" brought taerls stears to her eyes. ♪ tomorrow, they're supposed to sing it for her at madison square garden. ♪ children get older ♪ >> it is upablehumbling. i went into this job to teach music. >> reporter: you're an elementary school music teacher. >> exactly. i shouldn't be having the opportunities that i'm having. ♪ sometimes i wish i were an angel ♪ >> reporter: and the kids know they're part of something special. >> i notice when you all sing you clap for each other. >> yeah. we do that for each other. >> reporter: but next month, the music they make together will be just a memory. the fifth graders will graduate and most will go on to junior highs that don't have any choir class. the music programs victims to budget cuts.

you guys aren't going to have this chorus anymore. >> no. >> i really don't even want to, like -- i don't even want to think about that. >> there's this one song that we sing, one of the lines says leaving school. and when i sing it i feel like we have one more month and we're not going to have it anymore. >> it's heartbreaking. >> reporter: a lot of schools don't have music programs anymore. what does this mean to them, at the end of the day? >> for some of them it means everything. some of these kids i truly believe that this program will save their lives. i really do. i think they will go on and they will have something that they know that they're good at. ♪ because i build my life around you ♪ ♪ time makes you bolder ♪ >> reporter: he hopes that will give them the confidence to make their voices heard, well beyond the halls of ps-22. ♪ i'm getting older too ♪

>> reporter: for "nightline," i'm sharyn alfonsi in new york. >> so beautiful. congratulations to them. thanks to sharyn alfonsi for that report which you filed earlier this year. when we come back nigella lawson has the perfectless peeps s recipes to keep you warm in a special christmas edition of the "nightline" plate list. sl ere, on the wings of lunesta. and if you wake up often in the middle of the night... rest is here on the wings of lunesta. lunesta helps you fall asleep and stay asleep, so you can wake up feeling rested. when taking lunesta, don't drive or operate machinery until you feel fully awake. walking, eating, driving or engaging in other activities while asleep, without remembering it the next day, have been reported. abnormal behaviors may include aggressiveness, agitation, hallucinations or confusion. in depressed patients, worsening of depression, including risk of suicide, may occur. alcohol may increase these risks. allergic reactions, such as tongue or throat swelling

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ht >> announcer: "nightline" continues from washington with terry moran. >> and so we turn now to food and a woman from britain as famous for how she cooks as what she cooks. nigella lawson's early career was as a journalist critiquing books and food. now she's the one writing best

sellers. she's bold she's beautiful and for her, tis the season for enticing food. nigella lawson has tonight's plate list. >> i'm really always asked, what is your guilty pleasure. and i always say, look the one thing you should never feel guilty about is pleasure. you should feel guilty if you fail to take pleasure. this is a risotto. i do it with squash. this is just going to be roasted. onions. barley. some white wine, sherry, anything. some vegetable brooth. this cooks and it needs about 30 minutes. when i was a child, we didn't have huge presents that people get now. we would get -- we would get a christmas stocking and it would

be mostly filled with a few paper dolls that you dressed by putting little tags on and foil-covered chocolate coins. but we used to get a pomegranet. we would be getting out the seeds with a hair grip and eating it all morning. the barley is done. so, this is half the squash. and it's been whizzed up in a blender with half the marscapone. and the cooked cubes of unpeeled squash. it's a beautiful color. and that just feeds everyone. it's just so cozy and welcoming. i think so many women deny themselves pleasure in food which, i think leads to a very unhappy relationship with your own body anyway.

if you can allow yourself to take pleasure ifn food then maybe you won't have to do that what's always rather idiotically called comfort eating which is called discomfort eating. it's so mad to think there's one ideal way to be and if you're not that, you've failed. and i resist that reading of womanhood. i think everyone wants dessert at this time of year. it's really some how sumptuous, but easy. this is incredibly good bittersweet chocolate that i have crushed to smithereens in here. and now i'm just going to pour some hot heavy cream in milk and the idea then is that you're melting the chocolate without having to do anything frightening on the heat. i'm going to crack an egg right down the funnel and leave it for about 45 seconds. now, i'm not going to cook this. it just sits in the refrigerator. so obviously if you can't eat

raw egg, you can't eat this. this is sweetened chestnut pure ray. a bit of rum. and that is the extent of it. and then, what you have is this really glorious little french petit four with chestnut and chocolate. happy holidays. i remember hearing my son talk to one of his school friends and his little friend said oh it's so annoying my mom always asks me what i did at school every day and my son says you're lucky, all mine asked about is what i had for lunch. >> nigella lawson. when we come back a very special christmas for some brave men and women, but first, jimmy kimmel with what's comeing up

next. >> jimmy: tonight, rachael ray, garrett hedlund, music from darker my love and these guys. "jimmy kimmel live" is next.